Transforming the way in which we engage families in our classrooms, schools, and districts is paramount if educators are going to exhaust all options to promote the success of students. A multi-faceted approach must be implemented. Families live busy lives and have unique circumstances pertaining to their availability on a given day. Educators must never discount the opportunities that technology provides to a parent or guardian on an internet enabled device. Grades, learning experiences, event information, feedback, praise, constructive criticism, highlights, and a plethora of other insights can be transmitted to families from educators through a variety of technological methods. (more…)

Innovative. Bold. Creative. These are the qualities exemplified by the 2018 NASSP Principals of the Year. Each year, NASSP recognizes principals who harness the potential of new technologies to further students’ learning.

In my previous post, I shared tips on getting started with Twitter through hashtags and chats. The focus of this post is to help you build your personal network by learning which education rock stars you should follow on the platform. (more…)

Before the emergence of the World Wide Web, competitive endurance athletes relied on magazine ads to find like-minded locals to train with, to compete against, and to engage as a race crew. The internet broadened that scope globally and now platforms like Strava, Zwift, and MapMyFitness provide slick user interfaces which allow athletes to connect virtually through shared workouts, weekly challenges, diet and nutrition, comment areas, and more. A whole new world of connectivity has emerged. Fortunately, similar networks exist for school leaders and the most powerful one is absolutely free. (more…)

Next to classroom instruction, the role of an effective school leader is crucial to the success of a school and its students. That’s why NASSP, the National Association of Elementary School Principals, and the American Federation of School Administrators have designated October as National Principals Month to honor principals nationwide. (more…)

Learning doesn’t just happen in a lecture-style setting with a speaker addressing an audience. Unconferences provide an alternative to traditional conference programs, allowing you to collaborate and learn from one another in informal, flexible, and inspiring ways. (more…)

As we all know, principal leadership is an essential fuel within schools that ultimately determines optimal student and school performance and success. But we also know that principals and the work they do in schools around the country are too often overlooked. (more…)

Before I joined the Twitterverse, I was critical of its use, and quite frankly, was turned off by the concept all together. I often read and watched what seemed like ridiculous stories of what celebrities shared about their lives—from the foods they ate, whom they had lunch with, or whom they were dating. I saw no purpose for it all. However, all that changed about five years ago when my former district embarked on a digital journey.

As schools continue to settle in following the winter break, I extend to you and all principals across the nation our best wishes for a happy and prosperous 2016. This year is a special one for NASSP—2016 marks the 100th anniversary of NASSP’s founding by a small group of principals who gathered in Detroit to create a network of support for school leaders facing common challenges. This mission has remained a constant through a century’s worth of events and evolution. The effects of the Great Depression, World War II, the “happy days” of the 1950s, the civil rights movement, the Cold War, the digital revolution, and 9/11 all reverberated in schoolhouses. They prompted school leaders to provide reassurance and optimize teachable moments and they worked to build the future one student at a time. (more…)